intensive care
noun
1
: the continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
Many of the sickest patients need intensive care, even to the point of being connected to a mechanical respirator.—
Lawrence K. Altman
Lawrence K. Altman2
: a designated area in a hospital providing intensive care : intensive care unit
heart patients in intensive care
… short of breath and feverish, doctors isolated him in intensive care.—Elisabeth Rosenthal
—often hyphenated when used before another nounElisabeth Rosenthalan intensive-care nurse
Examples of intensive care in a Sentence
Her condition will require intensive care.
Recent Examples on the Web
The hospital was already past capacity, with hundreds of patients being treated inside and around 50 people, including children, in its intensive care unit from other incidents of troops firing onto crowds of people trying to reach food aid in recent days and weeks.
—Aya Batrawy, NPR, 17 June 2025
In a June 12th update, Kevin shared that their son Jackson had left the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and was home resting with his sister Emma, 3.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 16 June 2025
He was admitted to the intensive care unit at Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Washington, but died just days later on Tuesday.
—Paulina Dedaj, FOXNews.com, 14 June 2025
The health system was an early adopter of electronic intensive care unit (eICU) technology, which allows ICU staff to virtually connect with a critical care physician on overnight shifts.
—Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for intensive care
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Aya Batrawy, NPR, 17 June 2025
In a June 12th update, Kevin shared that their son Jackson had left the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and was home resting with his sister Emma, 3.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 16 June 2025
He was admitted to the intensive care unit at Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Washington, but died just days later on Tuesday.
—Paulina Dedaj, FOXNews.com, 14 June 2025
The health system was an early adopter of electronic intensive care unit (eICU) technology, which allows ICU staff to virtually connect with a critical care physician on overnight shifts.
—Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for intensive care
Cite this Entry
“Intensive care.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intensive%20care. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
intensive care
1 of 2 noun1
: the continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
She required intensive care and survived without sequelae.—The Journal of the American Medical Association
The Journal of the American Medical Association2
: a designated area in a hospital providing intensive care : intensive care unit
heart patients in intensive care
a patient isolated in intensive care
He spent several days in intensive care before recovering from the overdose.—Jerome Groopman
Jerome Groopmanintensive care
2 of 2 adjective
variants
also intensive-care
: providing or concerned with continuous monitoring and treatment of critically ill or injured patients using special medical facilities, equipment, and services
intensive care medicine
an intensive-care nurse
also
: receiving medical care in an intensive care unit
intensive care patients
compare acute care, chronic care
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